Cauliflower Crust Pizza

yes, pizza, with a crust made from cauliflower, and it's actually good.  mr. d says it's better than california pizza kitchen.  i don't think it's that good, but considering the health factor, it's a good weeknight meal.  i found the recipe when i was browsing pinterest for recipes using cauliflower.  i'm not a huge fan of cauliflower, so i was trying to come up with a way to use it.  recipe girl http://www.recipegirl.com/2012/01/16/cauliflower-crust-hawaiian-pizza/ had what looked to be simple and delicious.

Cauliflower Crust Pizza

2 c cauliflower, grated (about 1/2 of head)

1 egg
1 c mozzarella cheese, shredded

1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp onion powder

Place the cauliflower crumbles in a large bowl and microwave them (dry) for 8 minutes. Give the cauliflower a chance to cool.  Preheat the oven to 450.  Spray a cookie sheet or pizza pan with nonstick spray (or use a nonstick surface). In a medium bowl, mix the cauliflower crumbles (about 1 1/2 cups since they shrink after cooking) with the remaining crust ingredients. Pat the "crust" into a 9 to 12-inch round on the prepared pan. Spray the crust lightly with nonstick spray and bake for 15 minutes (or until golden). Remove the crust from the oven and turn the heat up to broil.  Add whatever toppings you'd like onto your pizza, and broil 3 to 4 minutes, or until the toppings are hot and the cheese is melted and bubbly.

in making this in the past, i've used 2 egg whites instead of one egg, but this time i just used the one egg.  also, i thought it would be fun to try pepper jack cheese instead of mozzarella in the crust.  i was expecting it to have some spice, but it didn't really add anything.  i should have used the pepper jack as the topping cheese.

this is the crust before baking.  the mixture holds together pretty well, but not like a pizza dough consistency, so you really do just kind of pat it and push it around into a circle on the cookie sheet.  as for toppings, i don't use any kind of measurements, i just use however much looks good.  i used more of my grandma's homemade spaghetti sauce for the sauce, then a layer of mozzarella cheese, fresh sliced pineapple, and some chopped canadian bacon.  mr. d's request was to "load on" the toppings, so i added another layer of cheese, pineapple, and bacon.  i cut it into 6 slices when it was done and served with a green salad with cucmbers and ranch dressing, yummy!